Francis Coulson

Francis Coulson (6 June 1919 – 20 February 1998) was an influential British chef and co-owner of the Sharrow Bay Hotel. His obituary in The Independent described him as a deeply sensitive cook whose ‘airy, light sticky toffee pudding could stand as an epitaph to him in itself’.

The Sharrow Bay Country House was later awarded the Restaurant of the Year title in 1980 and one Michelin Star in 2008.

In her book, Food Culture in Great Britain, Laura Mason wrote, "Influential figures included Francis Coulson, at Sharrow Bay in the Lake District (said to be Britain's first country house hotel) and George Perry-Smith at the Hole in the Wall Restaurant in Bath. They and a few contemporaries influenced a generation of restaurateurs with their personal styles, which depended on a deep interest in eating (as opposed to learning the business aspect via a college course)."

Coulson's obituary in The Independent described him as a deeply sensitive cook whose ‘airy, light sticky toffee pudding could stand as an epitaph to him in itself’. He died in Ullswater on 20 February 1998.